The Benefits of A Teleworking Team

Mark Mitchell is the CEO of a successful small company who eats three meals a day with his wife and young son. Working remotely gives Mark the balance he needs to be a good CEO, husband, and father. Being a distributed team also has many benefits for his company.

Home Warriors The Economist, November 11, 2008

The People

Finding someone who can do the type of low level Linux systems programming CodeSourcery requires is very difficult. Being a distributed company allows CodeSourcery to find talented people anywhere in the world. It gives them access to an enormous pool of potential employees. The success of a software company depends on the people they hire. Taking advantage of talented people from all over the world gives CodeSourcery an amazing advantage.

Financial Savings

CodeSourcery spends almost all of their budget on salary. They have very few travel expenses and almost no facilities expenses. They don’t pay for office space. It costs an average of $10,000 per year to provide someone a cubicle to work in. With more than 30 people working for them, CodeSourcery is saving at least $300,000 a year. Offices also need receptionists, phone systems, network support, and facilities managers which CodeSourcery doesn’t have to pay for.

CodeSourcery does supply their engineers with the basics, like phones, printers, and Internet access. But the cost is very small compared to supporting them in an office. They do whatever they can to support their remote employees. Many companies see working remotely as a privilege —CodeSourcery sees it as a competitive advantage.

A Great Job Where You Want To Be

Some people wouldn’t leave Manhattan for all the money in the world, while others would pay to stay away from the city. There isn’t a single right answer to where you should live. CodeSourcery’s distributed team allows their employees to live in a location that works for them.

The flexible hours also make a big difference for the team. Ricardo told me, “I’ll go for a run, or I’ll go to the gym, or I’ll go for a bike ride. It is definitely a perk to be able to do that.” CodeSourcery offers their team flexible hours, interesting projects, and the chance to live anywhere in the world. It is a very attractive working environment.